Last week, two weeks after throwing a challenge to get rid of Evil Russell, the six-strong alliance at Zapatera proceeded to send Stephanie, the second of Russell’s two allies, to RedIsle despite all of her and David’s attempts to get rid of Sarita instead. The bad news for Zapatera is, they have now lost two straight Immunity Challenges and all of their early momentum. The worse news is, the alliance of six will have no choice but to turn on itself should Boston Rob and Ometepe win Immunity for the third straight week. And in the meantime, Matt looks to be completely undefeatable, having dispatched Krista (the first of Russell’s allies) to garner his fourth straight RedIsle win.
Zapatera, Night 16. After returning from TC, Steve tries to get David and Sarita to call a truce for the time being. David responds that he doesn’t trust Sarita but “has no problem with” her, and wonders if he’ll be the next to go. Sarita, for her part, promises to try to step up to the plate more. Steve is happy that the six that are left are the six that he planned on taking to the merge, but the problem is, quite simply, that they’re not THERE yet. I’m not sure yet whether there will be two finalists or three (I’m assuming three) or eight jury members or nine. I also don’t know if Matt (or whoever) will be rejoining the game before or after the merge, and if he gets any special Immunity for surviving for so long. Whatever the case, the merge has got to be right around the corner, and Zapatera can’t worry about their petty squabbles if they are going to turn things around. Steve hopes that as well.
Redemption Island, Day 17. Whereas Krista and Matt seemed to easily bond because of their faith, I’m seeing no such connection between Matt and Stephanie. He’s doing that “man” thing where she just jabbers on and on about all the food she’s going to eat when she goes home, and he just nods his head an grunts at strategic intervals. Consider for a moment that Matt’s been on RedIsle for twelve straight days now, and he’s been completely alone except for those brief 12-hour periods between when his opponents arrive and when he sends them packing. I’m sure it’s quite lonely, but one gets used to it, and suddenly having to spend hours listening to someone run her mouth non-stop would probably make me crazy too. Fortunately, Matt retains his composure, but his body language says it all: “Is it duel time yet?”
At Ometepe, the invitation has arrived for the latest duel, and Phillip says that its his turn to go, and Boston Rob will be going with him. In interview, he rehashes everything that happened at the feast in the last episode, and says that his strategy vis-à-vis Rob is to let him continue to think that he’s in control of everything and everyone, including him, but just you wait! Rob, meanwhile, is going just because he wants to keep his eye on Phillip, who he describes as untrustworthy as well as the “most unaware person” he’s ever met. Word, Mr. Mariano.
Duel #5: Matt vs. Stephanie. With Phillip, Rob, Ralph and David in attendance, Jeff explains the rules of today’s duel, which is purely a mental challenge, much like the old game show Concentration. A series of platforms are set up in the arena in a 5 x 4 grid, and the top of each platform has a symbol with caption (skull, crocodile, etc.) The object is to select and reveal two at a time, and hopefully get two symbols that match. The first one to match five symbols wins. Matt, against all odds, flips over the first two at random and gets a match. Unbelievably, Stephanie does the same thing on the very next turn. After a couple of misses, Matt gets his second. And then a third. Stephanie gets her second. Matt gets his fourth. Stephanie then gets her third match. Matt then misses, opening the door for Stephanie, who unfortunately misses too. By this time, there are only six symbols left unmatched, and Matt doesn’t blow it two straight times. He wins, 5-3, extending his streak to five straight. Wow. Just… wow. I don’t know how many more duels he’s got left to do, but I hope it’s very few, because for him to do this well and not earn a spot back in the game would just be criminal.
Stephanie is sad because now her dream of winning Survivor is over, but before she goes she tells Ralph that Sarita is the weakest link on Zapatera, and that they’ll have to cut her loose if they want to win. She then tells Ralph to keep David because he’s good at puzzles, but Ralph replies that he can do that duty if need be. Stephanie then cautions Ralph that Rob will use any means to take the Zapaterians out, and Rob just silently nods his head. Her final comment is that Matt is unlikely to throw his lot in with Rob again, so they should watch their backs. And then she’s gone, and so is the final wisp of Russell’s legacy (unless you count Matt). Phillip tells Matt, quite sincerely, how impressed he is with him, and even compares Matt to a samurai warrior. Matt can only reply with a bemused thank you, and Rob is now unequivocally convinced that when the merge comes, Phillip’s first move will be to get him out, proving once again just how perceptive Rob is and how blatantly transparent Phillip is.
When Rob returns to his camp, he keeps no secrets from them, relating everything that happened, including the fact that Phillip proposed to Rob that they not relate everything, in an effort to keep Special Agent Crazypants in the Ometepe doghouse (like that takes a lot of effort). Rob is now so supremely confident in his position that, should Ometepe lose Immunity, he won’t even keep the fact that Phillip is going from Phillip. Yeah, I know, he is a cocky S.O.B., but you can afford to strut your stuff a little bit when you’ve played a perfect game so far.
Simultaneously, over at Zapatera, Ralph and David are relating the day’s events to the rest of the group, though they conspicuously omit the part where Stephanie told them to get rid of Sarita next. Ralph, curiously, seems convinced that Matt is still in the Ometepe camp and would not flip to their side if they merged. Ralph also cocks his head at a distant David and opines that he’s a candidate to switch sides as well. Because he’s, you know, a lawyer, and lawyers are all arrogant and elitist. And suddenly I’m starting to not like Ralph as much. He preens like a peacock at having orchestrating the demise of Evil Russell, but any arrogance in others is a cardinal sin? David attempts to get the others to join him in a round of fishing, but gets no takers. As he goes off, pole in hand, Steve and Julie admit that their patience with David has nearly run out. Sarita, of course, jumped off that bandwagon some time ago, and in interview decries David’s lack of social gamesmanship.
Immunity/Reward Challenge. In this challenge, both teams must navigate an obstacle course to retrieve bags full of balls roughly the size of shot-puts. Then they must return through the obstacle course again and find a way to shoot the balls into a hanging net, which is about half the diameter of a regulation basketball net and about five feet higher off the ground. Winning tribe gets immunity, as well as a helicopter ride and a picnic feast, which includes alcoholic beverages (though none will be for Natalie, who Jeff points out is not legally allowed to).
And they’re off! Sarita attempts to retrieve the first bag, which is on the end of a coiled spring, by hand, but savvy Rob just whips the bag around like a tether-ball, giving Ometepe a sizeable early lead, but Sarita gives way to David on the second bag, and Zapatera retakes the lead. Rob has to literally drag Phillip’s bony ass through the course himself, costing them even more time. Still, they end up at the basketball nets at the same time, and though Zapatera gets a lead again, former NFL-er Grant proves he’s as proficient at basketball as he is at lacrosse. Ometepe wins immunity for the third straight time. As they board the helicopter, Zapatera can only slink back to camp in defeat.
Ometepe is all smiles as their ‘copter circles a dormant volcano. Even Rob is in awe of the sheer beauty of the place, and states that of all the rewards he’s been on in four seasons of Survivor this just might be the coolest. And all hyperbole aside, the view is simply breathtaking. Of course, once the feast starts, all of Rob’s attention goes to where the HII clue is hidden, and, once again, he’s able to find it and hide it while the rest of his team is distracted. Then, in interview, Rob flashes his pearly whites and throws the clue over his shoulder and into the volcano without even reading it. He does have a flair for the dramatic, doesn’t he? (And, amazingly enough, none of the rest of his tribe is shown looking for it, or even wondering if there IS one, not even Phillip. Idiots.)
A glum Zapatera returns to camp, and Mike relates the complete suckitude of their lack of results. He also says that his tribe is getting weaker and weaker because of hunger, which makes losing three straight food challenges even worse. As David gathers wood, Sarita asks the rest what’s up, and it seems clear that David is the target. While Dave may indeed be good at puzzles, Mike says that he can fill that role as well Ralph tells Sarita that David did admirably today, but she responds that he can’t be trusted when they merge, and that’s a big factor.
David, for his part, is hoping that his pleas to keep the tribe strong don’t fall on deaf ears like they did at the last TC. But it may not come to that: he completely outperformed Sarita at the challenge, and Mike and Steve seem to have finally taken heed, and try to convince Ralph that turning their momentum around is paramount right now. And so, the four of them (Ralph, Mike, Steve and Julie) basically have the same choice that they did two days ago: keep someone who is loyal but weak, or keep someone who is strong but untrustworthy. Mike rightly points out that Zapatera is in a “tailspin”, and the cold, hard ground is coming up fast.
Tribal Council. Jeff opens the Q&A by directly asking Ralph what the hell has gone wrong with Zapatera. Ralph replies that they came close today, but Jeff interjects by pointing out, “Excuses are for… David?” “Losers,” finishes David. Jeff then reminds Julie just how the tables have turned since they threw the challenge to get Russell out, and Julie responds that karma is indeed a bee-yotch, but it seemed like the right move at the time, and she still believes they have the stronger tribe. Jeff then turns right to David and suggests that it’s not the lack of strength that’s dragging them down, but a lack of cohesiveness, and David wholeheartedly agrees, citing the fact that Ometepe seems to be one big happy family. (Which is about 85% true, but there’s no way David could know what an assclown Phillip is at camp.)
Big Dumb Ralph then admits that he has no idea what “cohesive” means, and Jeff explains it to him. Ralph’s job, which is as a farm manager, entails some supervisory duties, and Ralph says he’d rather have his employees be hard-working and dysfunctional than the exact opposite, because workplace harmony breeds laziness. (Glad he’s not MY boss.) Footballer Steve disagrees. Jeff then asks David if his support of Stephanie puts the target on his back, and he admits that it does, but still maintains that his proposed course of action was the right one. Sarita, of course, balks at that notion. Jeff then points out that now that the alliance of six’s enemies are all gone, there’s nowhere to hide anymore, and asks Sarita if she’s gunning for David. She waffles, but David responds that the answer to that question is so obvious it’s not worth mentioning.
Voting time. No surprises, David and Sarita vote for each other, and that’s all we see. Ralph’s HII will obviously not be played tonight, so out come the slips. Sarita. David. David. Sarita. Sarita. And… Sarita. Hmm, that is quite interesting. It turns out that Ralph was the only one of the other four in favor of keeping Sarita, which is significant because this is the first time since the game started that something happened that Ralph didn’t have a hand in. Perhaps his position is not so set in cement after all. And so, one week later than it should have been, Sarita’s torch is snuffed, and off she goes to her almost certain doom.
Next week: One more duel, with the winner rejoining the game, and whaddaya know, Matt has a foot injury. And, as night must follow day, the merge finally arrives, turning Rob into one anxious Bostonian.
